I Just Wanna Be Somebody (To You) - An Everything Sucks! Fic
by 19096742
Summary: Kate/Emaline Scene from Everything Sucks! Ep 8 written from Kate's perspective


*Rewritten scene from _Everything Sucks!_ Episode 8 from Kate's perspective*

Kate glanced at Emaline out of the corner of her eye. As hard as Kate tried to read the book sitting in her lap, it seemed almost impossible to concentrate when the other girl looked so forlorn. Emaline's eyes seemed dull and empty as she wiped off her makeup. Her hair fell limply around her face, something which Kate realised she'd never seen before. Without her usual bouncy curls and vibrant lipstick, Emaline looked… smaller.

"Hey Emaline? I know you're probably not in the mood to talk. I just want to say I'm sorry about Oliver. For what it's worth, someone who would just leave you like that wasn't worth it to begin with."

She instantly regretted saying anything. The silence that followed felt like it stretched for hours. Flushing a bright red, Kate forced her attention back to her novel. What did she think, that because they'd gone shopping together once they were friends now? There was no way that-

"How do you do it?"

The words brought Kate's panicked thoughts to an abrupt halt. "Do what?" she asked, stunned.

"It's like it's so easy for you."

Kate frowned in confusion. What could be easier for her, the weird girl, than for the prettiest, most popular girl in school? She felt awkward even thinking about it. "I'm not sure I know what you're referring to."

Emaline turned towards the bed where Kate was sitting, leaning against the shabby sink of the room they'd be staying in for the duration of the excursion. Her face looked pale without makeup, and she seemed to lack all of her usual bravado. "You just… exist. You don't have to be anything for anybody." Her voice was shaky, and she didn't sound at all like the confident girl Kate saw at school. Kate realised that this might be the most honest she'd ever seen Emaline.

"Is that a good thing?"

"Of course, it is," she sighed, the theatrical nature Kate was so used to coming through once more. "For me, I've always just been 'Oliver's girlfriend'." The emphasis almost seemed sarcastic. She slumped on the single bed beside Kate's, her face dropping once more. She looked at Kate "Now that he's gone it's like, what am I even doing?" As Emaline spoke, Kate noticed a quiet desperation in her voice that she'd never heard before, and suddenly it was as if someone had lifted a veil from her eyes; all her bad behaviour, the cruelty, the acting out, it was all a cry for attention. Everything Kate knew of the great Emaline Addario was a fabrication, a cover for the scared, broken girl before her now. "I'm so pathetic," she murmured, almost to herself, as if she'd forgotten Kate was even there.

"No, you're the opposite of pathetic." Kate spoke before she realised what she was saying. If she was being honest, Kate had always somehow admired Emaline, despite everything she'd done. Seeing her so low made Kate uneasy; she felt an overwhelming need to reassure the other girl. "You're funny, you're confident. You're a way better actor than he ever was."

That brought a smile back to Emaline's face. "That's true" she laughed, her eyes regaining some of their usual sparkle as she sniffed back the tears she had managed to conceal from Kate. The sound of her laughter made Kate smile, which Emaline seemed to notice. She picked herself up off the opposite bed and flounced over to Kate, sitting herself down close enough that their knees were close touching. "Why are you being so nice to me? I was a total bitch to you." Emaline briefly met Kate's gaze, an unspoken apology in her eyes.

That was true. Emaline had taunted Kate, spread rumours about her, made high school hell for her, and yet after seeing Emaline so vulnerable, it no longer seemed to matter to Kate all that much. Of course, she was still curious. "Yeah, why were you so mean to me?"

"I don't know." Emaline sniffed back the last of her tears and smiled a little. "Maybe I was a little jealous?"

This took Kate by surprise. "Of me?" she asked incredulously. What on earth did Emaline Addario have to be jealous of?

"Yes! You're so cool and you don't even try. It's really annoying!" Emaline teased, laughter flickering across her face, giving it a radiant glow.

"I am not cool," Kate spluttered, feeling even more awkward than usual at the absurd notion that she was anything other than the principle's weird daughter.

"Yes, you are. You're even cooler for thinking that you aren't. It's really cute." Emaline rolled her eyes and nudged her shoulder against Kate, smiling a little bigger. Kate felt a warm swell in her chest to see Emaline grin, laughing as she nudged Emaline back. Their eyes met, and Kate felt her heart skip a beat as Emaline held her gaze, acknowledging the new bond that had somehow formed between the two girls. With a small laugh, Emaline flopped backwards onto the bed, her blonde hair spreading out behind her on the pillow. Kate paused, then carefully followed suit. Emaline turned to face her as they lay side by side.

The moment probably only lasted seconds, but to Kate, it felt like an eternity that they lay there, eyes locked with each other. She took a deep breath and suddenly, without permission from her brain, the words she'd been thinking tumbled out of her mouth in one quick rush. "I think you're the most sexy and attractive person I've ever met in my entire life."

Emaline's brow furrowed slightly, as if Kate had just given her a riddle to solve. The silence sat heavy between them as Kate held her breath, waiting for Emaline to say something, anything. At this point she wouldn't even care if the other girl laughed in her face.

"You really think so?"

Kate barely heard her over the pounding of her heart in her chest. Her throat tightened with nerves, barely able to choke out her response. "I think you're perfect."

Emaline's face softened and, without looking away from Kate for a second, slowly moved to lift herself up onto her elbow. With heightened senses Kate held her breath, the sound of Emaline's body shifting over the bedcover as she leaned in closer was almost deafening. Kate's lips parted, her eyes closing in anticipation…

"Disgusting!" The moment was shattered abruptly as the two girls jumped apart just in time to see Leslie enter the room. "I found my retainer on the floor of the bus."


End file.
